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Bulletin of the Geological Society of Greece Vol. 50, 2016 LATE QUATERNARY AND HOLOCENE FAULTS OF THE NORTHERN GULF OF CORINTH RIFT, CENTRAL GREECE Valkaniotis S. Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Department of Geology Pavlides S. Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Department of Geology https://doi.org/10.12681/bgsg.11715 Copyright © 2017 S. Valkaniotis, S. Pavlides To cite this article: Valkaniotis, S., & Pavlides, S. (2016). LATE QUATERNARY AND HOLOCENE FAULTS OF THE NORTHERN GULF OF CORINTH RIFT, CENTRAL GREECE. Bulletin of the Geological Society of Greece, 50(1), 164-172. doi:https://doi.org/10.12681/bgsg.11715 http://epublishing.ekt.gr | e-Publisher: EKT | Downloaded at 21/02/2020 05:31:34 | Δελτίο της Ελληνικής Γεωλογικής Εταιρίας, τόμος L, σελ. 164-172 Bulletin of the Geological Society of Greece, vol. L, p. 164-172 Πρακτικά 14ου Διεθνούς Συνεδρίου, Θεσσαλονίκη, Μάιος 2016 Proceedings of the 14th International Congress, Thessaloniki, May 2016 LATE QUATERNARY AND HOLOCENE FAULTS OF THE NORTHERN GULF OF CORINTH RIFT, CENTRAL GREECE Valkaniotis S.1 and Pavlides S.1 1Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Department of Geology, 54124, Thessaloniki, Greece, [email protected], [email protected] Abstract New results for the recent tectonic activity in the northern part of the Gulf of Corinth rift are presented. Geological mapping and morphotectonic study re-populate the area of study with numerous active and possible active faults. The area is dominated by individual and segmented normal faults along with major structures like Marathias and Delphi-Arachova faults. The results are in accordance with recent studies that reveal a more complex and wider structure of Corinth Rift to the north. Keywords: Active Tectonics, Seismic Hazard, Normal Faults, Extension, Delphi Fault. Περίληψη Νέα δεδομένα για την πρόσφατη τεκτονική δραστηριότητα στο βόρειο τμήμα του βυθίσματος του Κορινθιακού Κόλπου παρουσιάζονται. Με βάση γεωλογική χαρτογράφηση και λεπτομερή μορφοτεκτονική μελέτη, η περιοχή μελέτης εμπλουτίζεται με πολυάριθμα ενεργά και πιθανά ενεργά ρήγματα. Στην περιοχή επικρατούν μεμονωμένα και συνενωμένα κανονικά ρήγματα, καθώς και μεγάλες κύριες τεκτονικές δομές όπως τα ρήγματα Μαραθιά και Δελφών-Αράχωβας. Ta αποτελέσματα έρχονται σε συμφωνία με πρόσφατες μελέτες που αποκαλύπτουν μια περίπλοκη και πιο ευρεία δομή της τάφρου του Κορινθιακού στα βόρεια. Λέξεις κλειδιά: Ενεργός τεκτονική, Σεισμική Επικινδυνότητα, Κανονικά Ρήγματα, Εφελκυσμός, Ρήγμα Δελφών. 1. Introduction The Gulf of Corinth Rift is a rapidly expanding intra-continental extensional rift in a W-E setting, across the Alpine formations of the External Hellenides Geotectonic units of Pindos, Vardoussia, Parnassos and Beotia (Celet, 1962; Doutsos et al., 1988; Ori, 1989; Armijo et al., 1996). The initiation of the rift is estimated at the Late Pliocene (3.3 Ma - Leeder et al., 2012) and is currently involving extension along segmented and individual normal fault of W-E to WNW - ESE strike in a broad zone from Patras Gulf to the west up to Beotia and Asopos rift to the east (McNeil et al., 2005; Tsodoulos et al., 2008; Taylor et al., 2011; Bernard et al., 2015). Evidence of the active deformation state and rate of the Corinth Rift are numerous and strong historical and recent earthquakes, intense microseismic activity and extension measured by GPS and surveys (Sebrier 1977; Ambraseys and Jackson 1990; Hatzfeld et al., 2000; Papadopoulos et al., 2000; Bell et al., 2009; Lambotte et al., 2014). Earlier interpretations of the Corinth Rift as an asymmetrical basin with fault activity concentrated on the southern north-dipping faults are being revised as a more complex basin structure is revealed from detailed offshore surveys. The scope of this study is to fill a gap of onshore fault activity in the northern part of the rift in order to assess seismic hazard in a 164 http://epublishing.ekt.gr | e-Publisher: EKT | Downloaded at 21/02/2020 05:31:34 | poorly mapped area, further understand the structure of Corinth rift and document the transitional zone between the Gulf of Corinth and the northern active extensional basins of Kifissos, Evoikos Gulf and Spercheios Rift. Figure 1 - Active and possible active faults of the northern Gulf of Corinth. Fault numbers are in accordance with Table 1. Bedrock formations with dark grey color and post-alpine sediments with light grey colors. Index boxes A, B and C show location of Figures 2 and 3. Seafloor topography of Corinth Gulf is shown with shaded relief. Grey fault lines denote offshore faults from Stefatos et al. (2002), McNeil et al. (2005) and Bell et al. (2009). 2. Active Faults of the Area 2.1. Delphi - Arachova Fault Zone The Delphi - Arachova fault zone is a large active extensional structure north of the central part of the Gulf of Corinth that defines the southern slope of Parnassos Mountain (Péchoux, 1977; de Boer and Hale, 2000; Piccardi, 2000). The main Delphi - Arachova fault consists of two normal fault segments dipping south, with a length of about 10 km each (Figure 1 and 2). The Delphi fault to the west is clearly defined by a large morphological scarp from the Amfissa-Itea plain to the east of Delphi archaeological site with a trend of NW-SE to W-E. The Arachova fault to the east, is less accurately defined and mapped due to the large slope debris and avalances and the erosivity of the flysch basement formation. Fault measurements and morphotectonic features show a complex normal fault zone with an oblique slip (fault lineations 600 to the west). Overal morphological scarp reaches up to 500 meters in the Plistos Valley, with a post-glacial striated fault scarp of up to 10 meters. The fault zone is distributed with multiple parallel fault scarps along strike (Figure 3) converging at a depth to the main Delphi fault surface, as is evident in the area of the Delphi Oracle (Piccardi, 2000; Valkaniotis et al., 2011). The Delphi Oracle site complex is situated inside the fault zone on the hanging wall and is disrupted by at least two historical surface ruptures in 373 BC and 1870 (de Boer and Hale, 2000; Piccardi et al., 2008). The most recent activation of the fault zone was in the 31 July/1 August 1870 earthquake cluster with the main event having a possible magnitude of M=6.7, one of the strongest historical earthquakes in the central Greece (Ambraseys and Pantelopoulos, 1989; Papadopoulos et al., 2000; Ambraseys, 2009). 165 http://epublishing.ekt.gr | e-Publisher: EKT | Downloaded at 21/02/2020 05:31:34 | The western limit of Delphi-Arachova fault zone is defined by the southern limit of entrenching of the meander of Skitsa River. There were found no evidence of propagation and linkage of the fault zone to the Amfissa active fault to the north-west. To the east, the limit of the fault zone is obscure, with the probability of the NE-SW propagation through Parnassos Mt. The Plistos watershed is propagating to the east, capturing drainage that previously flowed to the east (Figure 3). This is explained to be a result of the deepening of the basin in the central and western parts of the basin due to the subsidence in the hangingwall section of the fault. Figure 2 - The Delphi - Arachova Fault zone. Neogene and Quaternary sediments from this study and IGME Geological Maps. Figure 3 - A) Interpretive section with the tectonic model of the Delphi-Arachova Fault Zone. B) The eastern half of Plistos valley. Plistos basin (blue line) is expanding eastwards, capturing drainage that previously flowed to the east (yellow dotted line). Arachova fault and possible extensions with red line. A complex array of normal and strike-slip faults with a W-E/WNW-ESE strike and north-dipping was mapped displacing Quaternary sediments in the Agia Efthimia plateau. The relation of this fault complex with the Delphi-Arachova Fault Zone is unkown, with a probable interpretation as an 166 http://epublishing.ekt.gr | e-Publisher: EKT | Downloaded at 21/02/2020 05:31:34 | antithetic western extension. Agia Efthimia fault is believed to be a candidate for the 1580 historical earthquake (Papadopoulos et al., 2000; Ambraseys, 2009). 2.2. Western Corinth Gulf In the western part of the area studied, multiple onshore and coastal en-echelon normal faults were mapped (Figures 1 and 4). The largest structures are the Marathias and Trizonia fault zones, dipping to the south in the western rim of the Gulf of Corinth. Marathias fault has an evident morphological scarp trending W-E along the coast. The Kokkinovrachos fault (Figure 4) south of Lidoriki, is a north-dipping normal fault antithetic to the general fault setting (Valkaniotis, 2009). It is interpreted as an inherited structure, re-activated in the current stress regime, with evidence of Late Quaternary-Holocene activity (recent colluvial sediments and a possibly post-glacial fault scarp). Along the northern coast, the coastal fault zones of Agioi Pantes and Galaxidi are found to the east of Eratini (Figure 4). The Galaxidi fault has a WSW-ENE strike and terminated onshore to the east of Galaxidi town. A continuous post-glacial striated fault scarp along the limestone bedrock is evident for a recent (Holocene) activation of the fault. Parallel to the Galaxidi fault is the Agioi Pantes fault, dipping also south, and both forming an overlap zone (ramp structure in Figure 4). Figure 4 - Above: The Agioi Pantes and Galaxidi Fault Zone. A ramp structure is formed in the overlap area between the two faults. Elevation and bathymetry contour interval is 20m. Below: Kokkinovrachos Fault. Normal Fault scarps mapped with thick black lines and dot on downthrown side. 167 http://epublishing.ekt.gr | e-Publisher: EKT | Downloaded at 21/02/2020 05:31:34 | Figure 5 - A) Fault zone detail of the Galaxidi Fault.